Primary Sources

Conwell, Jim. “The Greater Chicago Food Depository.” Personal interview. 22 Nov. 2013.

Jim Conwell, the Director of Communications of the Greater Chicago Food Depository, provided the food waste team with valuable information on the inner-workings and goals of the Depository, as well as insight into the food insecurity issue in Cook County. (Specific Info here). Jim Conwell is a credible source of information for food waste because he has worked with the GCFD for two years and is well-informed about the overall facts about this food bank. Specifically, the information about the numbers of food insecure families compared to the food wasted was particularly valuable. This interview provides the food waste team with a grand perspective on food donations and food insecurity.

Davis-Berg, Elizabeth. “Columbia College Chicago”. Personal Interview. 15 November 2013.

Elizabeth Davis-Berg, Ph.D., Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas,discussed the cause and effect of food and subsequent packaging waste on the environment specifically the impact on soil and possible hazards in landfills. She touched on the incentives and disadvantages for people and businesses to limit food waste and some statistics and resources for information on food waste in America. The personal impacts she discussed such as the importance of composting and significance of educating people on food waste are especially helpful. Elizabeth Davis-Berg is a reliable source due to her extensive research and knowledge of humanities involvement and impact on the environment. She has a Ph.D. and B.A. in specializations in Ecology and Biology and is knowledgeable in her field of study. This interview gives us a more investigate backing in our study of food waste and its many issues.

Iseminger, Stuart. “Lakeview Pantry Interview.” Personal interview. 12 Nov. 2013.

The Director of Programs and Operations at the Lakeview Pantry of Chicago, Stuart Iseminger, answered many of our questions concerning food waste solutions, food bank regulations, and statistics surrounding these topics. The Lakeview Pantry collects 1.6 million pounds of food annually from various sources, including Trader Joes, Whole Foods, Jewel-Osco, the Greater Chicago Food Depository, and neighborhood food drives, feeding 24,000 individuals annually. They toss out highly-perishable food, such as produce and bread, even though the beneficiaries can take as much as they need. As a not-for-profit food bank, Lakeview Pantry is covered by the Good Samaritan Food Donation Act, where they cannot be sued by any individual who has taken sick because of their food. I evaluated this interview as a credible source because Stuart Iseminger has many years of personal experience in working for the Lakeview Pantry of Chicago. Specifically, this interview provides the relevant information to the question of food waste because it supplies valuable solutions and alternatives to food waste. It also offers insight to the other end of the spectrum of food waste: food donations. I was surprised that businesses seek out the food banks to donate to. I would have thought it was reversed. This interview will be useful to our documentary because it provides valuable insights to the workings of a local, large-volume food bank.

Montgomery, Michael. “Restaurant Food Safety and Waste.” Personal interview. 4 Dec. 2013.

“Public Law 104-210”. (110 Stat. 3012; Date: 8/1/96). Text from: United States Government Printing Office; Access: 10/29/13.

The Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act of 1996, signed into law by President Clinton, ensures that a person or nonprofit that donates food to the needy in good faith will not be subject to criminal or civil liability. However, this is not a blanket of protection for donors, as injury or death resulting from “gross negligence” will be subject to law. This law does not supersede local health codes and regulations. The information provided is relevant to food waste because it defines the protection of donors and is an incentive to do so. The entire law in itself acts as a structure for donation, which provides guidance for interview questions and further research topics, such as violations and court cases.

Rauchwerk, Autum. “Food Recovery Network Interview.” Personal Interview, 12 November, 2013.

Autumn Rauchwerk answered our questions about how the student-led Food Recovery Network works on campuses across the country and how the organization supports the development of FRN student groups.

“Student Interviews”. Personal Interviews. 15 November, 2013.

This is a collection of six interviews with students from Columbia College Chicago, all of which who live in the University Center. They provided insight into how students view the food waste that goes on in the cafeteria of the University center. They provided details as to why they believed food waste occurred. Each of them also commented on why they saw them selves wasting food and if they thought it was a bad habit.

Secondary Sources

“EPA Food Surplus Guide.” Epa.gov. United States Environmental Protection Agency, Feb. 2012. Web.

The EPA created Food Surplus guide provides general information on America’s food surplus: where it goes, where it comes from and what we should do with it. The guide is an easy to process visual guide that helps to give people a simple view of this complex problem. We can use it as a way to simplify some of the more difficult issues around food waste. The EPA is a government program that works to protect human health and environment.

Dive!. Dir. Jeremy Seifert. Perf. Freegans. First Run Features, 2011. Film.

Dive! is a documentary film about America’s wastefulness when it comes to food, and the lifestyles of Freegans who feed off of America’s waste. It follows the life of Jeremy Seifert who is faced with numerous obstacles because of his freegan lifestyle, as he and his friends attempt to dumpster dive in various Los Angeles Areas. Seifert film effectively explores the idea of “living off of America’s waste.” by attempting to question Americas wasteful habits and its effects on the planet and starving people in need. The film also promotes people to get involved by being less wasteful, volunteering at a local food shelter, and offers a petition on their website to end food waste at grocery stores.

“: freegan.info.” freeganinfo RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Oct. 2013. <http://freegan.info/>.

This website, created by the human and environmental rights organization Freegans. According to the website, Freegans are “people who employ alternative strategies for living based on limited participation in the conventional economy and minimal consumption of resources.” Freegans fight against the wasteful trends of capitalist society by raising awareness, giving to people in need, and going against consumerism through the act of diving for food in garbage cans. Freegans are people who choose to live their life alternatively to the norm for the greater good of our environment. They are attempting to diminish the amount of food waste by reclaiming the “waste” and turning it into usable produces that feed thousands of people. Though technically, dumpster diving is illegal in many areas, Freegans play an important role in the large overall goal of many environmental and globally conscious people who are aware that we live on a finite planet, with limited resources, and not enough room to continue wasteful behaviors.

Hatz, Diane. End Food Waste Now. EndFoodWasteNow.org, 2013. Web. 06 Nov. 2013.

This website is a complete guide to food waste research, including the extensive issues of food waste, solutions to this problem, and resources for further investigation. This website is a credible source because it was created and is maintained by Diane Hatz, a sustainable food marketing expert and founder of Change Food, a nonprofit organization that educates the community about food waste. This website is relevant to our Curious Columbia study because it provides an accurate picture of food waste in America, anywhere from consumer waste to business waste, as well as solutions and tips on how to fight food waste. This site is incredibly complete and resourceful. Thorough research was conducted and successfully made accessible to the curious public. This website will specifically act as a go-to site for easy information concerning food waste, and will be pushed as a useful link on our website.

Leib, Emily. “The Dating Game How Confusing Food Date Labels Lead to Food Waste in America.” NRDC: The Dating Game. The Harvard Food Law and Policy Clinic and the Natural Resources Defense Council, Sept. 2013. Web. 29 Oct. 2013.

This report examines the food wasted in America due to the confusing expiration dates. According to their findings, $165 billion annually is wasted on perfectly edible food because of unclear expiration dates. They propose to regulate the words, methods, and dates used on food, as well as educate Americans about food safety. This report is credible because it was conducted by the Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic in partnership with the Natural Resources Defense Council, two groups of varying interests who collaborated for a common goal. This information is relevant because it provides a reason for food waste and proposes solutions, as noted in the following excerpt, “Improving date labeling policies and practices can decrease consumer confusion, which will not only reduce food waste, but also improve food safety.” I was impressed by the thoroughness of the study and the offered solutions. Specifically, we will use this information to guide interview questions and tie it into our solutions.

“The Ugly Truth About Food Waste In America.” Interview by Ira Flatow, Dana Gunders, and Jonthan Bloom. Npr.org. N.p., 24 Sept. 2012. Web.

This NPR interview, headed by Ira Flatow and including Dana Gunders and Jonathan Bloom is an examination of the issues around American food waste. They inspect the statistical information in country wide waste, the usefulness and uselessness of expiration dates, and the dead end problems of food waste particularly in landfills. NPR is many useful interviews and information relating to many contemporary issues. This is very helpful information related to America’s major issues due to food waste.

“USDA Announces Funding to Improve Rural Housing | USDA Newsroom.” USDA Announces Funding to Improve Rural Housing | USDA Newsroom. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Dec. 2013.

The USDA and EPA Food Waste Challenge is a nation-wide campaign encourage the private and public sector to reduce food waste. The ambitious project shows a start at the national recognition of this issue. The USDA and EPA are government programs that provide information and programs that are good sources to become educated on this issue.